Exceed Expectations

Exceeding expectations is a choice and can become a nice habit to have as it becomes the foundation of all you do.  I used to work for an amazing company that started with two friends who sold camp equipment to various summer camps.  All camps needed footballs, baseball bats, art material, etc and they grew that business into a very nice PE, Early Childhood and Adaptive Education company.
When I started there, the company president, made an impact on my life.  He was kind, engaging and he genuinely cared for each employee.  There was a rough spot for me when I had to take six weeks off and I did not qualify for short term disability and he paid me the entire time I was out with the agreement I would pay it back (which I did).  Everyone wanted to work for this company and for this man.  If he were in business today, I'd be there.  When things started changing for the company, he stood in front of his employees and apologized for the situation and as he did, his voice faltered and his emotions clearly showed.  One employee shouted in the room "It's ok-- we've got your back"! What made this company so good?  What made him such a great leader?

All employees attended a two-three day training when they started.  The training could have been accomplished in ten minutes because his philosophy was "exceed expectations".  PERIOD.  That resonated with me and I find myself often going that extra mile and while sometimes, the receiver doesn't even recognize the "extra", I feel good.  When you exceed others expectations, you pay attention to details, you are more self-motivated and have a positive attitude.  You also differentiate yourself.
I like to be on the receiving end of all this too-- one of my favorite shops asks if I want a bottle of water while I am shopping, they offer to hold any packages I may have and when I am finished with my purchase, the wrap it in tissue, and put it in a reusable cloth bag and then in a gift bag.  I don't need all that, but they go out of their way to make me feel important to their business.
Zappos is another company whose business philosophy is to deliver great service and to differentiate themselves by being flexible and even a little weird.   They have a record holding customer service phone call that lasted 10 hours and the customer wasn't calling to complain or get something for nothing-- they just needed to talk and ended up buying a pair of Uggs boots.
As I go through my work day, family time and time spent with friends, I want to exceed expectations.  I want people to want to be around me, to be cheerful and supportive and I am finding, I want to be around those kinds of people too.